


Beautiful

by Laylah



Category: Homestuck, Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne
Genre: Crossover, Dystopia, Gen, Philosophy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-02-09
Updated: 2011-02-09
Packaged: 2017-10-15 16:42:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/162801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laylah/pseuds/Laylah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are very few humans left, and they are playing a game of their own: the rules are different, but the stakes are very like what Aradia is used to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beautiful

There is something about this splintered timeline that fascinates Aradia. It doesn't trouble her—very little does, especially disembodied as she is—but she finds it interesting in its strangeness. There are very few humans left, and they are playing a game of their own: the rules are different, but the stakes are very like what Aradia is used to.

She finds herself watching the human girl. She's...curious, she decides, after examining her emotions thoughtfully. It seems strange for a human to be so concerned with strength, when their species is so _bad_ at it. But the girl is determined, marshaling her forces, preparing to make her assault on the tower.

Aradia wants to talk to her.

She gets her chance when the girl confronts one of the few other remaining humans, an older female who used to instruct the younger ones before their game began. Now the older one is weakening—she doesn't have the will to go on in a world this harsh. Her soul is only loosely tethered to her flesh, and she seems to be inviting someone else to take over for her. Aradia takes the invitation.

The body shudders and twitches when Aradia takes control, and the girl—Chiaki—takes a cautious step back, raising her transformed arm. "What are you?" she says. "What did you do to Ms. Takao?"

Aradia sways, getting used to the weight of flesh again. "are y0u afraid?" she asks.

Chiaki's eyes narrow. "No," she says. It may not be true, but Aradia doesn't press the issue. "Answer me."

"i am Aradia. and that means n0thing t0 y0u." Trying to talk with humans is even more exhausting than trying to talk with her own kind. "what are y0u trying t0 d0 with all this strength y0u seek?"

"That's a stupid question," Chiaki says. She glances up toward the light in the sky. "I'm going to remake the world the way it _should_ be. So that the strong and the beautiful thrive."

She sounds so much like a troll: ready to fight, ready to conquer. Aradia doubts she will listen any more than they would, but she finds herself trying anyway. "strength al0ne is n0t en0ugh, y0u kn0w."

Chiaki lifts her chin. The long, blackened fingers of her right arm twitch and stir slowly, but the rest of her remains still. "I'm not stupid," she says. "But in case you hadn't noticed, the Vortex World isn't a good place for subtlety. I'm going to do what needs to be done, and that means having power."

Aradia's borrowed body sways, and she firms her control of it. "what if that makes y0u a m0nster?"

Chiaki smiles. "Then I'll make my world a place where the monstrous is beautiful."


End file.
